Yarn-evening attachment for spinning-mules.



R. J. HARRINGTON. YARN EVENING ATTACHMENT FOR SPINNING MULES.APPLICATION FILED APR. 9, 1910.

1,014,299. Patented 3311.9, 1912.

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ROBERT JOSEPH HARRINGTON,

OF- DALTON, .MASSACHUSETTS.

YARN-EVENING- ATTACI-IMENT FOR SPINNING-MULES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Jan. 9, 1912.

Application filed April 9, 1910.' Serial No. 554,540.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT J. HARRING- TON, a citizen of the UnitedStates of America, and resident of Dalton, in the county of Berkshireand State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Yarn-Evening Attachments for Spinning-Mules, of whichthe following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to a mechanism or combination of devices forspinning mules having for its object the production of yarn fromdelivered rovings of uniform size, twist and strength at all times inthe working of the mule.

Under the operation of the mule to pro duce and build yarn on bobbins,while the am is built onto the upper conical ends of the bobbins, thereis more or less throw off of the yarn so that instead of its being woundon the bobbins it flies over the upper ends thereof whereby consequentlythere is a tendency in the latter period of the building of the yarnonto the bobbin for a lessened drawing and twisting of the yarn, leavingitof coarser character than that which is filled upon the greaterportion of the height of the bobbin.

In other words, the object of the present invention is to provide ameans for the accomplishment of the object described and explained inLetters Patent of the United States granted to me, dated Dec. 29, 1908,No. 907,792; but in the present case the means for the obtaining of theeven yarn production to be built upon all portions of bobbin isconstituted by widely different and simpler means than that described inmy aforenamed Letters Patent of the United States. And my new andimproved means for the stated purpose is hereinafter described inconjunction with illustrations of so much of a spinning mule asnecessary to render the same clear, and is succinctly set forth in theclaims.

In the drawings :Figure 1 is a perspective view of my improved devices;Fig. 2 is a vertical cross sectional View on a somewhat enlarged scale,on line 2-2, Fig. 1, showing details of construction comprised in thenovel devices; Fig. 3 is a partial sectional view longitudinally throughthe clutch mechanism for the roving delivery rolls taken on line 3-3,Fig. 1.

In the drawings, A and B represent the usual roving delivery rolls ofthe mule located at the head or front of the machine, the roll A beingintermittently rotated in the usual manner by being periodically putinto clutch with the member a which has a constant rotary motion. Theclutch member a which is loosely mounted on an extension of the shaft Ais made as one with a pinion or small gear'wheel I) understood as havingin mesh therewith gearing operated from a suitable driving meanstherefor and as usual in most spinning mules. The clutch member d isunderstoodas having a spline engagement with the shaft A so that whenthe member d is slid to clutch with the clutch member a the shaft mustrotate, but so that when the clutch member d is withdrawn from the parta such member and the shaft will be at rest.

C represents a small'portion of the car riage of the mule, the samebeing understood as having its usual outward course in a direction atright angles to the lengths of the roving delivery rolls A and B and areturning course toward such rolls.

The carriage has a member, here represented as a roller D, adjustablymounted thereon and arranged for coaction with a roller 6 on the lowermember of an angular lever E, which is provided with a clutch operatingyoke f; said lever, furthermore, being provided with a forward extension9 to receive engagement therewith of the clutch locking lever F, whichis represented as pivoted to a stationary part it, of the mule frame andis adapted to swing so that its shouldered free end will engage theclutch yoke extension 9 and hold the clutch member 01 in clutch with theclutch member a, and thereafter to be disengaged from such clutchlocking engagement. The spring 9' connected to the lever E and to a studk on the fixed part it of the frame is operative to normally withdrawthe member (I, out of clutch at times when such member is not positivelyforced into clutch, and held locked.

G represents a shaft arranged at the rear-- ward of the delivery rollsand at right angles thereto, mounted for a rocking movement in thebrackets i 2' supported on the stationary part of the mule frame, suchshaft being provided with a lever arm which, by link m is connected withthe clutch locking lever F. A block J is mounted on the rockshaft, andit has a cam face 0 to be impinged against by a roller 1% on a bracketupstanding from and in suitable position on the mule carriage C. Whenthe mule carriage has its inward motion, that is one toward the rovingdelivery rolls, its member D will exert a cam-like action on the rollprovided arm of the angular lever E, wit-h the effect of so swingingsuch lever that the clutch member d will be thrown into the clutchmember a, and concurrently therewith the locking lever 13 will acquireits engagement with the clutch yoke extension 9 and hold the parts inclutch.- When the carriage has its outward course in a direction awayfrom the delivery rolls, the member D will pass away from engagementwith the clutch operating lever E, although the parts will remain inclutch until the bracket carried roller it rises in proximity to andimpinges against the cam faced edge 0 of the block J, whereupon theblock will be swung rearwardly and the shaft G will be correspondinglyrocked to elevate the arm k, and through its link force the clutchlocking lever F to its free position, leaving the clutch member d freeto be,as it will be,drawn out of clutch by the spring j.

In the description so far given, I have not referred to the meanswhereby a gradually lessening periodicity of, the clutch condition andcorrespondingly gradually lessening amount of roving delivery isacquired to correspond with the portion of the operation of the mulewhen the yarn is being built on the upper conical or attenuated end ofthe bobbin or cop; and such means will be now particularly pointed out:Below the rockshaft G is a shaft K, slidable through bracket supportstherefor, parallel with the length of the rockshaft G. This slide shaftK has a block L adjustably confined thereon by set screw 79, and it hasan upstanding bifurcated portion Q which enters a recess in a dependingportion of the cam provided block J, and has in effect an engagementwith said block by straddling the pin 1" which passes through theopposite walls of the recess and across the aperture upwardly into whichthe bifurcated part 9 of the block L extends. YVith the grooved collar 8affixed on the slide rod K engages the upper yoke formed end of anupright lever N which is intermediately pivoted and has a spring t forexerting a draft on the lever in a manner to normally swing the leverand force the slide rod rearwardly. The lever N is engaged by anintermediatelypivoted lever P arranged to swing in a horizontal planeand to be subjected to the action of the builder shoe Q. This part Q, isunderstood as the usual builder shoe common in nearly all mules, and hasa sliding movement on the floor under the mule for an advancing movementcorresponding to the progression of the spinning and the increasing ofthe quantity of the yarn on the bobbins; and further illustration andparticular description of the builder shoe is considered neithernecessary or desirable, although it will be stated that for a greaterportion of the time of the operation of the mule the builder shoe willhave a position rearwardly withdrawn from the location of the lever P,but will gradually approach the latter. And, therefore, proceeding fromthe time of the starting of the yarn building on the bobbins, theactions of the coacting parts for alternately clutching and unclutchingthe roving delivery mechanism will be uniform as in respect of theirtime and period throughout the greater course of the operation of themule; but when the bobbin is nearly filled, there remaining only tobuild the yarn in conical form and with lessening quantity at the upperpart of the bobbin, and when the builder shoe shall have come to contactwith the lever P, then each successive operation of the mule causing thefurther advancing of the builder shoe will correspondingly result inincreasingly swinging the lever P, gradually advancing the slide rod Kand with it the block J which, as before stated, has a spline engagementon the rockshaft G,so that by the positioning of such cam face nearerthe head of the machine it will be more quickly reached on the outercourse of the carriage and have imparted its swinging movement, causing,likewise,'the swinging movement of the rockshaft G, and through theconnections is and m the releasing of the locking lever F so that by thespring j the roving delivery mechanism will. be thrown out of clutch andrendered idle.

It represents a device of angular shape understood as having itsposition on the floor alongside the builder shoe and adjustable towardor rearwardly from the arm of the lever P which is engaged by thebuilder shoe. By the provision of this device R, the normal position ofthe lever and of the parts controlled by it may be determined and sothat the time when the builder shoe will come into coaction with thelever for the before explained effects may be comparatively soon or latein the operation of the mule as occasion therefor may require.

There may be times and conditions in the operation of the mule when myyarn evener attachment may not be employed, in which case the block Jhaving the cam edge 0 will be rigidly secured against movement on therockshaft by the simple expedient of the set screw u.

The slide rod lever N is represented as having a series of perforationsalong the length thereof through any of which the adjustable fulcrumstud 11 may be engaged; and the lever P which coacts with said lever Nand which is actuated by the builder shoe likewise has a series ofperforations alon its length through any of which the fulcrum stud tomay be passed; and so in consequence of said capabilities of adjustmentthe degree of the variation of the roving delivery periods in the finalpart of the building up operation may be modified so as to be extremelygradual or quite marked.

Various changes in the form, proportion and minor details ofconstruction may be resorted to without departing from the principles orsacrificing any of the advantages of this invention for yarn evenerattachments for spinning mules.

I claim 1. In a spinning mule, the combination with the builder shoe andthe roving delivery-controlling clutch mechanism, of a mechanismcont-rolling the operation of such clutch mechanism comprising .arockshaft having a lever which coacts with the clutch mechanism andhaving a cam surfaced part non-rotative relatively to, but slidablealong, the rockshaft, and a member on the back wardly and forwardlymoving carriage of the mule for successively engaging said cam surfacedmember and means automatically controlled by the position of the buildershoe for varying the position of said cam surfaced member relatively tothe zone of travel of the said member provided on the carriage.

2. In a spinning mule, in combination, a movable clutch member comprisedin the roving delivery mechanism and a yoke-provided lever engaging saidclutch member, a locking lever for engagement With and dis engagementfrom the clutch lever and a spring for forcing the clutch to openedposition, a rockshaft having a cam surfaced member non-rotatively butslidably engaged Copies of this patent may be obtained for thereon andhaving a lever arm, a link connecting said lever arm and said lockinglever, the carriage of the spinning mule having a member coacting withthe yoke-provided clutch operating lever and having a member coactingwith said cam surfaced member, a slide rod having a part thereonengaging the cam surfaced member, a lever engaged with the slide rod,another lever coacting with the slide rod engaging lever and the buildershoe across the path of movement of which the last named lever isextended.

3. In a spinning mule, in combination, a movable clutch member comprisedin the roving delivery mechanism, a lever for operating the movableclutch member, a member on the carriage coacting with said op eratinglever, a locking device for the clutch operating lever, a rockshafthaving an arm connected with said locking device, a cam surfaced blockhaving a sliding engagement along the rockshaft, and provided with astud, another member on the carriage whereby in the traverses of thelatter it engages said cam surfaced block, and through thelatter rockssaid shaft, a slide rod having a member extending therefrom and havingan apertured portion, which engage said stud of the cam surfaced block,the builder shoe and slide rod actuating mechanism, one of the movableparts of which is arranged across the path of movement of the buildershoe.

Signed by me at Springfield, Mass, in presence of two subscribingWitnesses.

ROBERT JOSEPH HARRINGTON.

Witnesses:

WM. S. BELLOWS, GERTRUDE R. DRISCOLL.

five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of-Patents,

Washington, D. G.

the opposite walls of

